richards



(No Model.) A 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. P. 1-1.. RICHARDS. GRAINWEIGHER.

No. 442,717. Patented Dec. 16, 1890.

(No Model.)

I. H. RICHARDS.

3 SheetsSheet 2.

GRAIN WEIGEER. No. 442,717.

Patented Dec. 16, 1890.

, @K MQA 0 e. 3 Sheets-Sheet 3. (MM F. H. RICHARDS.

GRAIN WEIGHER. 110,442,717. Patented Dec. 16, 1890.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANCIS II. RICHARDS, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE PRATT & IV-HITNEY COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

GRAIN-WEIGHER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N'o. 442,717, dated December 16, 1890.

- Application filed March 4, 1890. Serial No. 342,656. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANCIS H. RICHARDS, a citizen of the United. States, residing at Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and 'useful Improvements in Grain-WVeighers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to regulator grainweighers of the two-valve class operated automatically by the power or weight of the grain weighing.

The invention has for its principal object to furnish an improved machine of this class in which the regulation shall be effected without the use of a separate regulator-valve and without a shifting-valve actuator or a shiftable Valve carrier.

In the drawingsaccompanying and forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a side elevation of an automatic grain-weigher embodying my present improvements. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the upper portion of the machine, showing the parts that are carried by the top plate. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 2, including a portion of the grain-bucket. Fig. 4 is a front elevation of portions of the grain-bucket, hanger, and bucket-closer. Figs. 5, 6, and 7 are side elevations similar to the upper portion of Fig. 1, illustrating the construction and mode of operation of the reducing and cut-oh": valves and of the means for regulation.

Similar characters designate like parts in all the figures.

The frame-work for carrying the operative parts of this machine usually, and as shown in the drawings, comprises two side frames or uprights 2 and 4, held together by the top plate 5, carrying the supply-chute H, and by tie-rods. (Not shown.) The grain-bucket G,

of the well-known double-chambered type or class, is suspended under the chute H and discharges its loads of grain 'intermittingly, in the manner substantially as shown in Letters Patent of the United States, No. 403,988, granted to C. H. Cooley, May 28, 1889.

The grain-bucket G is journaled at 12 in the hangers 16 and 18, which are suspended by V-shaped bearings on the pivots or knifeedges and 17, respectively, of the principle arms 19 and 21 of the scale-beam 13. This beam has V-shaped bearings and 22, one at each end of the hollow shaft 50 thereof, which rest on the pivots or knife-edges 24 and 26, that are suitably supported, as by bearings 23 and 25, on the frame-work. Opposite to arms 19 and 21 an arm 28 extends rearwardly of the scale-beam shaft 50, and is provided With a pivot or knife edge 27, on which the main weight IV (also designated as the counter-weight) is suspended by a hook 29. The oscillation of the bucket G within the hangers is limited by two pairs of suitable stops 92 and 94: and 93 and 95; but said stops may be of any of the well-known kinds, which are shown in prior Letters Patent for like purpose. Extending to the bottom of the bucket the hangers 16 and 18 are there divided into arms 8 8 and 9 9, to whose ends are attachedthe closers 83 and for the dis charge-chutes 34 and 36, respectively, of the grain-bucket. These closers 33 and 35, which are preferably formed cup-shaped the better to hold the grain, are pivoted at 77 and 78 to the hanger-arms 8 8' and 9 9', respectively. On the swinging over of the bucket G to one side or the other, as the case may be, the closer lever or arms 83 83 and 8t 84: engage with the pins 81 81 and 82 82, that are fixed in the bucket and operate to close one or the other of said closers, as the case may be, they being opened by gravity.

For detaining the bucket in place I employ a system of levers and beveled catches, whereby easy working is secured. The first detent latch or lever 42, which is pivoted at 4:3 to the hanger 16 and whose outer end is arranged to strike the latch bracket or stop $6 on the frame-work, has a short arm 44, which extends upward, and has a projection or hook 37, engaging with the catch 47 of the lock arm or lever 48, that is pivoted at 49 to the hanger 16. Said arm or lever i8 has a detent block or catch 4:1 fixed to or formed thereon, having the angular .detent-faces 38 and 39, corresponding to and adapted to engage with the similar faces 51 and 52 of the bucketcatch 40, that is secured to the bucket by screws, as shown, or by other suitable means, as rivets or the like. The angles of said faces 38 39 and 51 52 are such that the pressure of the catch 40 on the block -l-l tends to lift the lever 4-8, but with a greatly-reduced force. Besides this the lever 18, being prolonged to the catch l7, secures another leverage and a corresponding reduction of force at the latter point. The catch 47 lies under the hook 237, which is normally held in place by the weight of lever 42. On the descent of the bucket and hangers the bracket to has only to overcome the friction of thehook 37 on said catch 47, when the lever 48 will be free to rise, and thus allow the bucket to swing over, the aforesaid beveled faces being suitably shaped to so operate said lever. A stop 31 in lever 48 limits the downward movemcntof the lever 42.

The valve mechanism for reducing and for cutting 01f the flow of grain to the bucket is actuated from and by the scale-beam. 'lhe reducing-valve G0 is carried by the arms (if? and (it, that are carried on the pivots (51, said valve being furnished with suitable stops G6 to regulate or limit its closing movement. This valve 00 closes under the outlet 05 of the chute ll somewhat more than half the width thereof. The valve is actuated by the lever (39 from the valve-actuating arm 71 of the beam 15. The construction and mode of operation of this reducing-valve in its preferred form are fully set forth in the prior application of C. II. Cooley, Serial No. 338,818, filed January 31, 1890, to which reference may be had.

The cutoff valve is carried by the arms 72 and 74, pivoted at 713 to suitable supports, as 53 and 5G,which are carried by the supplychute II. The arm 7.. is continued above the pivot 73 and carries the cam (38 and some suitable weight, as 90. The construction and mode of operation of this cut-off valve, to gethcr with the said weight, are fully set forth in the joint application of 0. ll. Cooley and F. ll. Richards, Serial No. 339,967, filed February 11, 1890, to which reference may be had. In this application Figs. 1, 5, ti, and 7 show successive steps in the operation of the valves. The valve-actuator 55, which in this case is a small roller, is carried by a stem 5%, that is fixed on the beam-arni 19, as shown in the drawings.

It will have been observed that the cam (38- has two faces 6 and 14. The part (5 of the cam-face is used during the closing of the reducing-valve and during the poising, and the part 1t is used to cut off the drip and to effect the discharge of the grain after the manner set forth in the aforesaid prior application Serial No. 339,967.

For the purpose of regulation the lower part or spout 250 of the chute ll is made laterally movable contiguous to the upper surface of the valve U0, being actuated by some suitable connection with a regulator operated by the accumulation of discharged grain. In the drawings the regulator consists of the hopper P, which is more fully described and claimed in the application of C. II. Cooley and F. II. Richards, Serial No. 0,28t, tiled Februaryl3, 1890, to which reference maybe had. Said hopper is supported between the up rights 2 and 4. of the frame-work by suitable pivots at 98 and has attached thereto in any well-known manner the arm 10, carrying the counter-weight 11. To the said hopper is pivotally connected the rod 12. which is piv' oted at 251 to the anglelcver 252, which is pivoted at 253 to the framework and at 254: to one end of the rod 255, whose opposite end is pivotally attached at 256 to the swinging spout 250. This spout is shown in the drawings pivoted at 0]. to the supply-chute II, and is operated by means of said connections from the regulator-hopper I.

The ordinary or normal operation of the machine is shown in Figs. 1, 5, and (5. In Fig. 1 both valves are open and the bucket is supposed to be receiving a full column of grain. In Fig. 5 the major part of the load has been received and the reducing-valve closed, the beam being brought to the poisingpoint. In Fig. 6 the beam is carried down and both valves are closed. During all these successive steps the spout 250 has stood in the same and in its normal position.

In Fig. 7 the valves are in the same position as in Fig. 5, the reducing-valve being closed and the cut-off valve open; but in this figure the spout 250 is thrown forward so that its outlet is entirely over the said reducing-valve and is fully closed. This movement of the spout, which is effected through the connections by the descent of the hopper P to the position thereof, (shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1,) stops the machine. \Vhcn by the continued discharge of its load the hopper I rises, the spout 250 is swung'back to its position in Fig. 5, thus partially opening its outlet and starting the machine, and thus the operations of the machine continue so long as it is supplied with grain and the discharge therefrom in not wholly obstructed.

\Vhen reference is herein made to the movement of the scalebeam, the movement of the bucket-supporting arms thereof is meant, this coinciding, of course, with that of the bucket itself.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. Ina grain-weigher, the combination, with the hangers suspended from the scale-beam, of the oscillating bucket supported in the hangers and having discharge-spouts, substantially as described, said hangers having pivot-bearin gs for b ucketclosers, the osci1lating closers pivotally supported in said bearings below said spouts, and means, substantially as described, operative] y connecting the closers with the bucket to open one closer simultaneously with the closing of the other closer on the movement of the bucket in the hangers.

2. In a grain-wcigher, the combinatiomwith the hangers suspended from the scale-beam, of the oscillating bucket supported in the IIO IIS

hangers and having the discharge spouts 34 and 36 and the closers 33 and 35 for said spouts, respectively, and pivoted below said spouts in the hangers, each said closer having a 1ever, as 83 and 84,0peratively connecting with the bucket to close one and open the other closer on the movement of the bucket in the hangers.

3. In a grain-weigher, the con1bination,with the hangers and the oscillating bucket supported thereby, of the bevelfaced catch on the bucket and the latch-lever carried by the hangers and engaging said bucket-catch, and detent devices carried by the hangers and engaging said latch-lever, whereby the pressure on the detent-cateh is reduced below that on the bucket-catch.

4. In a grain-Weigher, the combination,witl1 the hangers and the oscillating bucket supported thereby, 0f the catch 40 on the bucket, bevel-faced, as set forth, the lever 48, carried by the hangers and engaging said catch, the detent-lever carried by the hangers and constructed to engage said lever 48, and the stop set to operate said detent-lever on the descent of the bucket.

5. In a grain-\veigher, the co1nbination,Witli reducing and cut-off valves, of a laterallyniovable spout contiguous to the upper surface of the reducing-valve. and regulator devices operating the spout independently of the operation of the valves.

6. In a grain-weigher, the eo1nbination,With reducing and cut-off valves, of the laterallyswinging spout contiguous to the upper-surface of the reducing-valve, the regulator-hopper, and connections controlling the movement of the spout from said hopper.

7. In a grain-Weigher, the c01nbinati0n,\vith the reducing and cut-off valves actuated from the beam to close in succession, as set forth, of the laterallyanovable spout contiguous to the upper side of the reducing-valve, and regulator devices operating to close the spout by moving said spout over the reducing-valve when this is closed.

FRANCIS ll. RICHARDS.

Witnesses:

HENRY L. REOKARD, W. M. BYORKMAN. 

